A life of adventure

Winterville man wants to see America up close and personal

Posted: Saturday, March 29, 2003

By Lee Shearerlshearer@onlineathens.com

Doug Mathews, a 58-year-old former programmer at the University of Georgia, sits at his Winterville home by the canoe he bought with his 1976 tax refund. He will use the canoe to paddle about 866 miles of the Mississippi River this July. Mathews, who hiked the Appalachian Trail last year, will also begin a bicycle trip from San Diego to Jekyll Island in early April. Allen Sullivan/Staff

Just on the surface of things, you might not peg Doug Mathews for the explorer type.

Just look at the retired Wintervillian's work career: graduated from the University of Georgia in 1966, got a job as a programmer for the university at a time when not everyone knew what a computer was, loved his work, stayed with the same employer 30 years. He got a few promotions along the way, and by the time the 58-year-old father of two retired in 1999, Mathews was one of UGA's top computer administrators. Before finally hanging it up for good, he worked two more years for Home Depot, turning down offers of administrative posts to return to his first love, programming.

Finally retired for good, Mathews stayed at home a year before turning his energy to other activities, such as seeing America in a way few people do.

Last summer he started by hiking the Appalachian Trail, a hike of nearly 2,300 miles that he interrupted just twice - once when he came home to recover from an illness, the next time to return so he could continue his unbroken streak running in the Peachtree Road Race.

After being away from hiking for two months, his Peachtree time was slower than usual, said Mathews, who runs up to 50 miles a week.

Mathews has been running marathons for six or seven years now, but his endurance was greater than ever after all those days of walking.

Hiking the Appalachian Trail is no small feat, but lots of people do it. However, only a handful go on to what Mathews plans for this summer.

Sometime in early April, he's going to fly to San Diego, then bicycle east until he reaches Jekyll Island. But he won't stop after bicycling 2,800 miles.

Photo from Doug's AT hike.Special

Mathews expects to be back well before early July, when he'll keep his Peachtree Road Race streak alive.

But right after that, he'll be off again to add a third leg to his close-up tour of America - a canoe trip down the Mississippi River, another 866 miles. He'll use the same canoe he bought with his income tax refund in 1976, he said.

His family has ordered him to be back from his canoe adventure by September, when his first grandchild is due.

When he's through, it'll add up to a human-powered trip through America of about 6,000 miles.

Mathews has been a runner since about 1980, but never did much hiking or long-distance traveling. Now he wishes he'd hiked the Appalachian Trail a decade ago.

The idea wasn't something that came to him recently - actually, he's been thinking about it for more than 20 years.

''What got me interested in the Appalachian Trail was an article in National Geographic in the late 1970s,'' he said. The Geographic's glossy photos have been pulling him ever since, but somewhere along the way he conceived of the idea of seeing America three ways.

Doug Mathews runs along Milledge Avenue on March 21. Mathews said he tries to run between 40 to 50 miles every week. He is training to run the Peachtree Road Race, which he has done for 18 years.Allen Sullivan/Staff

''I just thought it should be a nice way to see America,'' he said.

When he did finally begin his trek last summer, he made the usual rookie mistakes, he said.

''Everybody starts off with way too much food,'' he said, by way of example.

When you're hiking all day every day, the weight of the things you carry becomes the factor that overrides everything else, he explained.

''I ended up with one extra day of food. You can go two or three days without food. You're just hungry,'' he said. He also carried very little water - water is plentiful on the trail, so he carried not water but chemicals to purify it, he said.

He also wound up getting rid of other heavy equipment, trading his camp stove in for a lighter version, he said.

Mathews started out last year on March 5, heading out from Amicalola Falls in north Georgia on a day when the temperature fell to 11 degrees.

''I started in early March because I wanted to miss the crowds,'' he said.

He had to pause in May in Waynesboro, N.C., when he got sick. He had dropped 19 pounds and was down to 126 pounds. But he put on weight rapidly during a week's recuperation back home, and was soon off again.

''I totally changed my diet when I went back on the trail,'' he said. ''I don't eat a lot of fats and red meat, but all that went out the window out on the trail,'' he said.

Photo from Doug's AT hike.Special

He reached the end, at Maine's Mt. Katahdin, at noon Aug. 14.

There were unforgettable moments, like the day he watched from his mountain vantage point as day broke and the day's activities begin in a small town far below - children getting on school buses, folks heading off to work.

Mathews also got to know people he expects will be lifelong friends. But he wasn't sorry when his trek ended.

''Once you hike a long time, your body adapts, and the rest of it becomes mental. You realize this is your job. You get up and walk all day,'' he said. ''About the last three or four weeks, I was ready to get this done.''

Mathews would not describe himself as an experienced cyclist, but he's getting ready, running a lot and taking ''spinning'' classes on cycling technique.

But his main training probably will come on the road, though, he said.

''I figured, on the Appalachian trail, I'd hike myself into shape. I'm going to do with same thing with the bicycle trip,'' he said.

Photo from Doug's AT hike.Special

Mathews kept a journal on his hike, and put it all on his Web site after he came back. He's going to do the same thing with his bike and canoe trips, but he's going to try something different on this summer's trips. He's going to try to stop at public libraries and other places along the way so he can update his Web page on the fly, so family and friends can keep up with his adventures pretty much as he's living them.

This fall, when these adventures are over, Mathews will think about what's next.

His wife, Jane, who has patiently supported him in his adventures, will be able to retire before too long. A walking tour of Europe might be in the offing for the couple, Mathews said.